Some Are Panicking Over ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ Box-Office …

I’m not quite ready to call “Avatar: The Way of Water” a failure just yet. I’d wait it out until next weekend which is when we’ll truly see if James Cameron’s movie has the legs needed to fully succeed. At least, that’s what many seem to be implying.

I know, it’s crazy to insinuate that a movie that opened to a 3-day $130 million intake is a “flop.” However, Disney shareholders seem to be panicking nonetheless. Mostly due to the film opening below its expected $175 million intake. A $400 million worldwide opening is not a “flop,” but when it comes to Cameron’s sequel, the most expensive movie ever made, maybe it will turn out that way.

This very time last year, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” opened to $260 million. So Spidey made twice as much as ‘The Way of Water’ did this weekend. That film also had legs and was boosted by consistently positive word of mouth.

There’s also the question of China. Many movie theaters there are still closed due to the zero-COVID policy installed by that country’s government. The result was a $57 million Chinese opening, much less than half the $200 million that was expected.

I never believed the whole $2 billion to break even narrative that was stamped on ‘The Way of Water,’ but it did cost a reported $460 million and that’s not including the massive marketing costs. So, yeah, I’d say this movie needs to make a lot of dough to break even. It’s not even a wild assumption to think it absolutely needs to get to the $1 billion worldwide mark.

Honestly, you can’t just expect Cameron’s sequel to be the saviour of what has been such a disappointing box-office in 2022. Fact is that a lot has changed since the first ‘Avatar’ came out in 2009, and Cameron has been vehemently insistent on making these sequels. Whether it turns out to exceed expectations is still up in the air. Just don’t hit the panic button just yet.